Just a heads up, I will be in Perry at the GA National Fair for the livestock shows most of the next two weeks. We have cattle, goats, and sheep this week and hogs next week. Then it’s Expo week, and I hope to see some of you down there. I will be working the GACAA (Georgia Association of County Agriculture Agents) Food Booth, so please buy lunch and help support our agricultural agents’ association—the best meal at the Expo, a BBQ sandwich, and a honey bun.
Peanuts: Maturity is still tracking the same, with low to mid-140s for 06s and TifNVs, and pushing late 150s on 12Ys. I would consider keeping dry corners separate; I worry about aflatoxin. Heavy dew in the morning means leaf spot diseases are not out of the picture, but the need for any further fungicide applications is certainly questionable. Here is what I’d do.
- Within 2 weeks of harvest, you are likely done.
- Already lost 25% or more of your leaves to leaf spot? A fungicide application is unlikely to be beneficial and will only add to production costs.
- If the plants spend considerable time wilted all day, there is little risk for further leaf spot.
- When might I spray? More than 3 weeks to go, and peanuts look good because of irrigation. Then I would consider a final application.
Cotton: By the end of the week, I would be utilizing higher rates of many products or switching to some stuff that may have better activity when it is cooler (i.e., Ginstar/Cutout/Adios). Keep in mind rain-free periods – rainfall is still spotty, but it’s not ideal when you have the opportunity to respray cotton. If you’re asking about watering open cotton to get better defoliation, but you’re two weeks off from defoliating. It’s not worth turning the pivot on as dry as we are; we’ll lose that water in a couple of days and will have to do it again if that’s the plan. Better off waiting to see if we catch a rain and then adjusting as we get closer.
- Rates: It’s cooling off some, I would consider bumping folex up to 12 oz, certainly use the highest rate of Prep. Ginstar is a good option when it cools off; 6-8 oz should be plenty. However, I would spike it with dropp/thidiazuron due to the regrowth potential of this crop. If we get a big rain, this stuff is going to go.
- Jassid Update from Dr. Roberts: When feeding, jassids inject a salivary toxin, which causes plant injury. These leaves will ultimately turn red and may begin to dry up. There is a delay in plant injury symptoms following feeding; however, we know that fields can exhibit severe symptoms in as little as 14 days in the presence of high jassid infestations. This is why we suggest managing jassids until 20-25 percent of the crop is open. We need green leaves to properly fill immature bolls in the top of the plant. Recent preliminary data suggest leaf productivity (photosynthesis) declines significantly as leaves show hopperburn and yellowing symptoms, and declines even further as leaves begin to turn red. We believe it is important to defoliate jassid-infested fields in a timely manner. If left uncontrolled, leaves may turn brown and desiccate, which could create problems with defoliation.